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Reply With QuoteShould be a pretty entertaining fight. I love what Strikeforce does, please let this land on Showtime!
Strikeforce's April 11 show on SHO? Radach/Scott Smith
Benji Radach vs. Scott Smith? Ah man...I like both fighters. That's a good one.
Strikeforce’s April 11 show could be televised on Showtime | Five Ounces of PainFiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned that a tentatively planned Strikeforce event on April 11 at the HP Pavilon in San Jose, Calif. could potentially be broadcast on Showtime.
A source speaking on the condition of anonymity has informed Five Ounces of Pain that despite reports to the contrary, existing television contracts between EliteXC and partners CBS and Showtime were not acquired as assets in Strikeforce’s completed deal to acquire select assets from ProElite.
However, the source indicated that talks between Showtime and CBS have been ongoing with Strikeforce and a deal to televise Strikeforce is considered likely to be finalized.
Five Ounces of Pain has also confirmed that a fight planned for the April 11 event will feature Benji Radach vs. Scott Smith in middleweight action. It is also believed that talks are currently taking place for Frank Shamrock to headline the event against a yet to be determined opponent.
MMA Junkie chimes in too...
Benji Radach and Scott Smith agree to Strikeforce bout on April 11 | MMAjunkie.com
Should be a pretty entertaining fight. I love what Strikeforce does, please let this land on Showtime!
Awesome main event! Smith seems to have come into his own since leaving the UFC and I was really impressed with the way Radach handled Ninja, should be a war and I'll be pulling for Scott Smith.
Belcher - Sonnen - Jardine - Leben - Condit - Fitch
UFC 116 Prediction Contest winner
"If Michael Bisping ever addresses me in public again, I will bury him where he stands." - Chael Sonnen
I'll be pulling for Scott Smith as well.
I wish I got Showtime.
Prediction Contest Wins:
UFN 11
UFC 79
UFC 81
[MTKrav911] 1:23 am "For some odd reason I'm watching "The Exorcist" and getting off on it"
[40daysZero40'sKrav911] - I'd like to see more Kickboxing, which HDNet has only now begun to show reruns of the big K-1 stuff and I'm getting off on that big time.
No Cung Le? When will he defend his title again?
He has since taken the Roger Huerta route and gone into movies.Originally Posted by Cuts O Meat
He said that he only wants to fight from now on in "big fights".
Prediction Contest Wins:
UFN 11
UFC 79
UFC 81
[MTKrav911] 1:23 am "For some odd reason I'm watching "The Exorcist" and getting off on it"
[40daysZero40'sKrav911] - I'd like to see more Kickboxing, which HDNet has only now begun to show reruns of the big K-1 stuff and I'm getting off on that big time.
That's fare enough.. He's getting on in age.. Probably only got a few fights in him..
On The Beatdown today on Sherdog they said that Strikeforce has acquired all the assets and contracts of the former Elitexc. The guy from Strikeforce says that they'll have 16 events on Showtime in place of what was supposed to be EliteXCs spot and that theyll have at least 4 CBS broadcasts.
"How soon we forget history...Government is not reason. Government is
not eloquence. It is force. And, like fire, it is a dangerous servant
and a fearful master."
George Washington
I wonder how this affects Strikeforce's contract with NBC. Will NBC be able to air fights that were originally broadcast on CBS, and are they gonna be happy with CBS's sloppy seconds. You'd think that they had some kind of exclusivity clause in terms of network TV, and if so, it could delay any live mma getting aired on CBS, but who knows?
The Strikeforce deal with NBC was a time buy, which explains its crappy time slot. Basically, Strikeforce bought the TV time and was then allowed to sell all the advertising slots to make up for the buy. Its the same thing that the UFC did for the first season of The Ultimate Fighter. The networks do this to see if a show works out, then "buys" the show for the following season if its a success. Strikeforce had been negotiating with NBC as of December to show some live events and upgrade their existing contract, but a deal was never completed. Thus the Strikeforce deal with CBS/Showtime will trump any existing deal with NBC.
Ahh, I see. Now let's see if NBC tries to draw in another another org.
Report: Nick Diaz likely for April Strikeforce event | MMAjunkie.com
With Strikeforce's acquisition of select ProElite assets complete, as well as the announcement of a new broadcast contract with Showtime, the California-based organization is now turning its attention to their April 11 event.
And with Benji Radach and Scott Smith's services already secured for the San Jose, Calif., event, and MMA legend Frank Shamrock and Strikeforce lightweight champ Josh Thomson seemingly not far behind, UFC, PRIDE and EliteXC veteran Nick Diaz (18-7) is the latest fighter rumored for the April 11 card.
The report comes courtesy of GracieFighter.com, the official website for Cesar Gracie's training camp.
The full report appears unedited below.
Nick Diaz will most likely be fighting in late March or early April for StrikeForce. His last bout was to have taken place in Dream against Sakurai, but Japanese television executives nixed the match and replaced Sakurai's opponent for a former pro wrestler they hoped would muster better ratings.
His opponent has yet to be named and final contracts have not been signed, however StrikeForce is committed to securing a marquee matchup for Diaz.
Diaz is currently on a three-fight win streak, including wins over Thomas Denny and Muhsin Corbbrey under the EliteXC banner.
Diaz had been competing at EliteXC's lightweight limit of 160 pounds. Strikeforce's lightweight division follows the more traditional 155-pound limit. It is currently unknown whether Diaz will attempt to make the 155-pound limit or compete in Strikeforce's 170-pound division.
Wingo!
Nice update, Rockem.
I was hoping we'd get to see him fight soon.
I'm impressed with the way the card is taking shape and we really don't know anything yet. If they can find good opponents for everyone rumored and add Gina vs Cyborg to it, that would be a monster card imo.
Wingo!
With all this focus on the card and individual fighters, I think we're missing the forest for the trees. These deals (there are two deals as CEO Chuck Champion explained to Josh Gross on SI.com- one with CBS/Showtime and one with Strikeforce) create the conditions necessary for the development of a true competitor to the UFC. Why? Well, for one, much of the toxic parts of ProElite are gone, including the Shaws, but more importantly the debt and litigation that was sapping the company of capital. "EliteXC" now will basically become King of the Cage which has been a profitable company. The entity that will be on CBS and Showtime will be a new version of Strikeforce which will include many of the high end EXC fighters, including Robbie Lawler, according to five ounces of pain.
Strikeforce has the business model and the leadership (Scott Coker) that most MMA organizations dream of. It has been consistently profitable and grown its cachet in the MMA world steadily over time. Most importantly, it is a stable company with experience in putting on quality shows that do not hemorrhage cash. It is the anti-Affliction. And with cable and network TV exposure, Strikeforce has a realistic chance to do what EliteXC never could: be taken seriously.
Although I firmly believe that competition has made it stronger, this may be the most serious challenge the UFC has faced. Strikeforce will not shut down the UFC, but it might provide a reasonable alternative.
Hell yeah, Drew. I like that forest! Thanks for posting the info.
The initial thread the other day wasn't about a specific card or fighters.
Part of that reason is that Strikeforce has some names that Americans are familiar with - that's a plus.
Well Dana always respected Strikeforce, right?
Oh, I missed the other thread? Well I think this is some of the biggest non-UFC news in recent memory. It's fascinating: there's finance, marketing, M & A and fists! I hope there's an MBA class about this! I swear, in my time at Stern, I will do at least one major paper on MMA. Oh yeah, forgot to mention. This is the last nail in Affliction's coffin. They should get in bed w/Affliction (screw Golden Boy) and make this thing happen!
...and see what Cuban's up to.
Definitely do a paper on it!
Surprisingly yeah, Dana has always supported Strikeforce.
Here's a little quote from Dana back in October from a Usatoday interview:
If they start to become bigger though, who knows how his thoughts will change.“I hope they do 10 million viewers (on NBC) next week. Have you heard me say a bad word about Strikeforce? I wish them all the luck in the world. I have nothing bad to say about guys who are running the right promotion
Prediction Contest Wins:
UFN 11
UFC 79
UFC 81
[MTKrav911] 1:23 am "For some odd reason I'm watching "The Exorcist" and getting off on it"
[40daysZero40'sKrav911] - I'd like to see more Kickboxing, which HDNet has only now begun to show reruns of the big K-1 stuff and I'm getting off on that big time.
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